The Skye Archipelago
by Vexenna
Summary: Just your average story about an average girl on an average journey... that is, until a dangerous organization decides to put the whole region in danger. Join Hailey on her journey around the region known as Skye Archipelago. With new Pokemon and new places to discover, nothing will stand in her way as she goes for the title of champion, except maybe Team Accio. Accepting OC's
1. Welcome to Nikkus City

"Professor Holly is expecting you Hailey!" my dad shouted down the steps. "Get your ass in gear." Leave it to him to be nothing but blunt. Athos stretched out beside me and yawned, flashing fangs before he closed his mouth. Athos was my Umbreon who'd evolved a week ago, scaring the shit out of me at Luke's bonfire. Everyone else just laughed at me when I quite literally fell out of my chair.

"_Hailey, get up_," he said directly, following my dad's example. I mumbled at him about something to do with pillows, but he pawed at my face until I was forced to get out of bed. I never really hated mornings, but they weren't my favorite time of day either.

Yawning, I made my way over to my dresser and pulled out my favorite outfit; the light grey, three-quarter sleeve shirt, my black, high-necked vest with the mauve top half that ended in a V at my chest, my dark grey short-shorts with the mauve cuffs and my mauve hat with the grey peace sign on the front corner. I know it was a lot of mauve, but it was just the right blend of red and violet that I couldn't help but love the color. Athos followed me as I slipped into my clothes on the way to the bathroom to comb out my wavy, brown hair. This thing had a habit of becoming an untamable Rattata's nest when I didn't take care of it right away.

So after I took care of my daily hygiene, I trekked up to the kitchen to find Professor Holly sitting at my kitchen table. My dad was conversing with her about something, but stopped abruptly when I poked my head up the stairs. Holly looked back and smiled at me, pushing a strand of her blindingly bright red hair out of her eyes.

"Mournin' Hailey," she said amiably in her thick accent. Finding Professor Holly at my house wasn't all that weird considering I worked for her and she never felt the need for personal space. It was just weird that she would show up on a Saturday… usually my only day off.

"Um… Morning," I replied, heading straight for the coffee pot on the counter. This was the stuff that I could not function out. I think I may have developed a caffeine addiction, but there were worse things in life. Athos even loved to sip out of my cup when he thought I wasn't looking. When I had poured myself a mug of coffee, I sat at the table with the two adults. "So whatcha need today?"

"Hailey!" my dad looked a little horrified that I was being rude, but Holly was here on my day off. It's her fault for being weird. Holly laughed her musical laugh and shook her head.

"Ets fine. Hailey an' I haff no need to be overly polyte to one anuther." I nodded, toasting my mug in Holly's direction just to try and appease my dad. He could be a little over the top when it came to manners. "Hailey, I wuz wondering if you wood run a very impurtant message fur me today. A colleeague off mine needs an egg that I haff been keepingk at my lab. I haff no tyme to run it to him and he only is staying on Fernvale Island fur a leetle while. He es in Forestri Town at the moment, helpingk the Poké Center set up their transfer compyooters. Please wood you help me?"

I thought about it as I sipped my coffee and eventually nodded. "Okay, I'll do it for you." Holly smiled and clapped her hands together.

"Excellent! Excellent!" she cried. "Comb by my offyces when you are ready tu go. Yur father has sumthing to tell you tuu." She danced out the door, leaving me and my dad in an awkward silence. He sighed and ran his hand over his face, looking into his own empty mug, trying to drag up the words of what he wanted to tell me.

"Hailey, I know you've been working for Professor Holly for a long while. She told me today that she thought you were getting restless and antsy." I didn't quite know where this conversation was going, but I knew if I interrupted now, my dad wouldn't finish what he was saying. "I know you're sixteen and nearly an adult, but you're still my only little girl. I don't know where the last seven years went… Anyway, what I wanted to say is that… I want you to go explore Archipelago. I am giving you my permission to leave on your own journey."

Coffee nearly shot out of my nose, causing me to have a coughing fit. _My dad was letting me leave! He was finally letting me go explore Archipelago_! I though joyously, then I remembered that he was sitting right there.

"Wow, dad. I-I don't know what to say…" I really didn't. Thank you seemed too inadequate. I didn't know how to express my joy, besides jumping around the table like an idiot. He smiled like he'd heard an old joke.

"How about that you'll be careful and you won't forget to buy a map for each island you land on?" I smiled so wide I thought the top of my head would have fallen off and hugged my Ursaring-sized dad.

"I will. I'll make sure to call you every time I leave and enter a town. I'll never leave without checking my supplies and I'll send you pictures any time I can. Thank you!" He hugged me back and handed me a dark violet backpack.

"This might be of help." It looked worn, but sturdy. Like those old monster buildings that wouldn't crumble in an earthquake out of stubbornness. There wasn't one bit of it torn, frayed or broken, but I knew it had been used before. "This was your mother's when I met her. She used to travel a lot and we met in the Crescent Isles. Take it for good luck."

"Wow, dad… now I really don't know what to say…" Mom had died when I was six. I didn't have many memories of her, but the ones I did were always bright and happy.

"Well, I already packed it for you. Trainer stuff, clothes and your PokéGear. There's a whole pocket in there for your travel gear and your Poké balls. Your wallet is in the middle pocket with a little gift from me. You'd better get to Holly's place before she thinks I made you stay." I swiped at my eyes to get rid of the tears forming and instead went to the door and pulled on my black high-tops.

"I promise I'll be careful, so don't worry about me," I told my dad before skipping out the door with Athos by my side. He had his tail held high in the air and was practically whistling with happiness.

"_Finally! I was wondering when he's make up his mind._" Athos, of course, would know that. He seemed to know everything in the world of gossip. I think it's because he could be practically invisible at night and sneak around like a ninja.

"I know! But we have to run that errand for Holly first. Then we can totally take on the Skye League." Athos and I dreamed of taking on the league in the Skye Archipelago, or Archipelago as every native called it. I hadn't trained with him much, but then again, we've never had much chance to. With me running errands for Holly, I never had time to battle with the other kids my age. I had only gotten to run all over town.

Even when I went to Forestri Town, there wasn't much to battle with. As far as Holly had told me, Athos was still not very strong, even if he _had_ evolved. The road to Forestri was calm and only had a few birds and bugs on it. Most stayed away just because they _thought_ Athos was too strong for them.

"Hailey!" I whipped my head towards the voice, finding Luke darting across the road with his hand raised in greeting. I waved at him, but didn't slow my pace. He knew I loved to run and was one of the few people who could keep up with my long stride. "How's it going, Sweetheart?"

"Eh. Holly's making me run an errand for her. I have to deliver an egg to her colleague in Forestri, then I have to call my dad, then I'm going to Festa city to start my journey across Archipelago." Luke tripped over his feet, but righted himself.

"You finally got permission to leave?!" he shouted, drawing more than a little attention.

"Yeah, just a few minutes ago." I giggled at his face. "I finally get to challenge the Skye League, right after I run that errand for Holly." Luke's huge smile faltered a bit when I mentioned the League.

"Don't you need a Trainer card to challenge the League?"

"Yeah. What about it?" Luke slapped his forehead in frustration.

"You have to take classes at the Trainer Academy to get a Trainer card. As far as I know, you never went to the Academy in this city." I groaned and would have slapped myself for forgetting such a basic principal if it wouldn't have made me look weirder than normal. "Sorry Hailey, just reporting the facts."

"I'll ask Holly what I can do about those classes when I get to her lab. I've really gotta go, Luke. See you later, or maybe not. Who knows?" He laughed as he went down the street that led to the park, his usual haunt on nice days like that.

"_Are we going to Holly's lab or would you like to find another person to talk to_?" Athos reprimanded me. He never had much patience when we had a job to do.

"It does not matter how fast one goes, only that one does not stop," I quoted at him. He barked out a laugh and jumped ahead of me, turning down Rowan Street. "Wait for me you insufferable beast!" I could hear his barking laugh from around the corner.

"_Here I thought you were the fastest runner in the city_," he taunted. "_Run, run as fast as you can_!" Athos was such a fool, but he was my fool ever since I found him on my doorstep.

Imagine, little five-year-old me going out to play in the rain puddles, only to trip over a forlorn little Eevee huddling on our porch. Of course it took an hour of wheedling and begging and pouting to get my dad to let me keep him, but I knew he'd grown to love Athos. I saw when he slipped treats to him under the table, and when he scratched right behind his ear where he liked it the most.

"_We're here_," Athos said, snapping me out of my reminiscing. He was standing in front of Holly's place, the large, three story building. The whole thing was painted bright blue, but it fit in with the other brightly colored buildings of Nikkus City. On Fernvale, Nikkus City was the only place not surrounded by forest, so the citizen's made sure to make it as unique as possible.

I pushed open the orange door and said hello to Holly's assistants. They were always happy to see me, usually because I took a bit of their workload from them. Nick was trying to handle a Starly that didn't want to be held. I whistled a five note tune to it and it flew over to me to investigate the noise. When it hovered over my head, I grabbed it by pinning its wings to its body, handing it to a very grateful Nick.

Miranda, usually a very organized person, was covered from head to toe with papers and clips. I bet they had gotten a fax from a professor in another region, maybe Oak from Kanto or Juniper of Unova or Birch from Hoenn. I grabbed a few from her hands before she would have dropped them. She smiled at me and put them on the nearest desk.

"Holly's in out in the backyard, if you were wondering," she helpfully informed me. "She's getting that egg ready for you."

"Thanks Miranda," I said, heading for the backdoor. Athos waved a paw at her before he followed me. Holly's lab wasn't too big of a place, but her backyard was a totally different story. The place was nearly an acre big and that was a lot of land considering it was in the middle of a city.

Even though Holly was researching the effects of the islands on the local population of people gifted with aura talents, she had a whole bunch of Pokémon at her lab. She was one of the first professionals to notice there were more aura users per square mile in the Skye Archipelago than any other region. That's not to say they aren't still rare, because I was the only one in this city as far as I knew.

"Hailey!" Holly shouted, over by a group of Nidoran of the female variety. "You are finally here! I take it yur father told you whut he wanted tu tell you?"

"Yeah, he did. I don't know how you convinced him, but awesome work Professor." She smiled as I gave her a high five. Holly and I had grown close after working together for such a long time. She was hardly thirty right now, one of the youngest Professors in the world. She and I had become good friends, mostly because she had yet to mature fully.

"The egg is over here, follow quick." Holly led me over to the egg nursery she had sitting there like a greenhouse. Inside were shelves lined with eggs from the Pokémon here. Blue ones with sharp spots, yellow ones with black lines, green ones with yellow tops, just about every color of the rainbow was in here.

Holly plucked an orange egg from a shelf next to the Oddish eggs. As far as I could tell, it might have been a Buizel egg. I wasn't _too_ good at guessing what would hatch, but there was a running bet with Holly and I about what would hatch from which eggs. We had almost gotten it down to a science.

"Here is the wun I want you tu take tu my colleeague." She put it in an egg case made for travel. "He wanted me to send him an egg that had been bourn under the moonlight. So, I had to wait unteel wun of the couples had an egg at nighttime." She handed the case to me and I took it carefully.

"Don't worry, I'll get this to Forestri without a single scratch." She smiled and nodded.

"Oi, I know yu weel. Here, take this with yu tuu." She handed me a Poké ball. "This weel help yu on yur journey around the Arkipelaago."

"Thank you Holly… but what is it?"

"Ets a Charmander. He's been doting over this egg and refueses to let me send it away without lettingk him go with tuu. Since you haff that talent with the aura and speak with Pokémon, I thought yu'd be able tu talk sum sense into him."

"Um, okay?" Holly laughed at my confused face. I'd always thought that if I ever got to go out and challenge the League, that I'd do it with Athos as my partner.

"Ets tradition to send off nu Trainers with a Pokémon, is et not?" She laughed at my face again and dug a black electronic thing out of her coat pocket. I put the Charmander's Poké ball in my bag before I took it from her. "This is a PokéDex. Et will tell yu about any Pokémon you run acrosst out there. There are Pokémon frum every region here in Arkipelaago, so there will be many tu see and befriend. Don't forget tu find sum that are frum only here, the Pokémon only found in Arkipelaago."

"Thank you Holly," I said, genuinely grateful for her help. "I'll be sure to make it useful. Though you and I still have bets going. I'll call around once in a while to check up and make sure you're paying me my dues."

"What iff I win? Yu'd better make enuff prize money to pay me _my_ rewards." I laughed with her.

"We'll see Holly! Hey, I need to ask you something." She raised an eyebrow.

"Whut is et?"

"My friend Luke reminded me that you needed a Trainer card to challenge the League. I didn't take any classes at the Academy to get mine." She smiled broadly and slapped her head like she'd just remembered something.

"That es right! I nearly forgot. Since yu haff been wourking fur me fur so long, yu already haff the skills they teach at the Academy. They gave me purmission tu give yu a Trainer's card. Miranda taught yu about edible frooits in the wild, yes?" I nodded. "Yes! And Nick taught yu about livingk outdoours, yes?" I nodded again. "See! Yu learned about Pokémon frum me and yu even know more about eggs and raisingk baby Pokémon than any other teenagers out there."

"Wow, I guess you're right, Holly." She nodded with pride and shuffled through her pockets, throwing away useless junk that always seemed to accumulate around her.

"Aha! Here yu go." She handed me a thick piece of laminated plastic with my picture on it. On the back were ten indented spots for the Skye League badges. "Yu know that only eight baadges are required to chaallenge the League's Eleete Foour, but I say yu go fur ten. It'll make yu a stronger challenger fur the Eleete Foour."

"I'll see what I can do," I promised her. "See you later Feraligator!"

"In a while Krookodile!" I headed for the back gate and Athos barked a farewell as he jumped over the gate to show off. I rolled my eyes at him and pushed the gate open with a pointed look at him. He smirked and trotted down the street.

I was still amazed at the fact that I was leaving Nikkus City for good. I had been dreaming about it for so long, and now that dream was coming true. From what I knew, the first Gym was in the Cat's Paw Islands. It was a group of roundish islands that looked like a cat's four fingered paw. I knew that most of it was covered in forest, like Fernvale, but there were a few places where the forest was thinner.

"_Hailey! Quit day dreaming_," Athos reprimanded me. "_You nearly ran into a pole_." I hugged the egg closer to my chest and shook the thoughts away. There would be no journey if I scrambled the egg before I even left the city.

"Thanks Athos." I sighed at my own stupidity and headed for the road out of town. I knew it would take roughly three days to get to Forestri. Usually it would take me two, but I had to make sure the egg stayed safe and I was leaving a bit later than I usually did. So, if I planned things right, I would get to Forestri at about one o'clock three days from now.

I turned the corner and nearly ran into Luke, who just happened not to be looking where he was going. I juggled the egg case to keep it steady and Athos even tried to help keep it in my grip. This egg's chances were looking bleaker by the second.

"Luke! Damnit, you gotta learn to watch where you're going!" I scolded him. He blushed and turned to the friend he was walking with. I noticed that it was Oliver, my favorite ginger.

"Told ya so," Luke puffed. Oliver's face broke out in a giant smile.

"Good for you Hailey! I can't believe you're finally leaving!" I giggled as he hugged me. Oliver was a touchy-feely kind of guy, but it only ever worked for him in good ways. Girls fawned over him like Combee over honey. Too bad for them that he didn't go for girls.

"Yeah, I am. Though I'll make sure to write home a bunch for you guys. Will you say goodbye to Jesi and Maia for me? I've really got to get this egg to Forestri for Professor Holly." Oliver winked and held a thumb up.

"You bet Cutie Pie. They'll be mad you didn't say goodbye yourself, but I'm sure they'll understand." I nodded and smiled as I walked around them.

"All right guys, I'm off. Don't do anything stupid without me unless you record it for me to watch later!" Luke laughed loudly and Oliver gave me another thumbs up. I started jogging back down the street again with a smile on my face.

It took me an hour to get out of the city. Dodging old neighbors and many other citizens, I reached the gates at about two and strode through them with a new feeling of freedom.

Making runs for Holly in the past was exciting, but I still had to come back home. Now I could go where I wanted, when I wanted without any say from anyone but myself. The pure thought of it made my skin crawl in anticipation. Athos looked at me with a weird expression when we passed through the gates.

"_Why are you smiling like that_?" he asked. I shrugged.

"I just can't contain myself, Athos. We're finally on our way to the top. We can finally make a name for ourselves. I can finally see the world beyond Fernvale Island. What's more to want?"

"_A sandwich_?" I rolled my eyes at him.

"I just fed you like three hours ago. You'll be fine." Athos looked disappointed, but perked up quickly when our road formed along the path. He loved jogging down the road with me when we ran things to Forestri. In the city he didn't have as much room as he did out here.

"_Didn't Holly give you a Pokémon_?" he asked. "_You should introduce yourself before it gets too late._" I hadn't thought of that. Actually… I had completely forgotten about the little guy in my haste to get out of the city. I dug the ball out of my backpack and threw it in the air.

The Pokémon to come out was a small, orange lizard with brilliant blue eyes and a bright fire burning at the tip of his tail. He looked around at the scenery before his gaze zeroed in on me and the egg.

"_Where's Holly_?" he asked bluntly. "_And why do you have my egg_?"

"So this is your egg?" I wondered aloud. The little lizard shook his head.

"_It's under my protection._" I nodded and gave him a smile.

"Holly gave the egg to me so I could transport it to Forestri Town and give it to a colleague of hers. She gave you to me so you could make sure it stays protected along the way." Charmander nodded thoughtfully as he turned the idea over in his head. Taking the chance to use my new PokéDex, I pointed the camera at him.

"**Charmander, the Lizard Pokemon. The flame at the end of Charmander's tail is an indicator of both its energy and its emotions. When it is happy and full of energy, it burns brightly, but when it is tired and sad, it sputters and smokes.**" I was intrigued by all the information it had in just a few sentences. I pressed the 'more details' button and brought up a list. "**Charmander, level 5, Male. Known moves, Scratch and Growl.**"

"Well this thing is pretty useful, ain't it boys?" Athos nodded happily and Charmander agreed. "Hey Charmander, would you mind me giving you a nickname? Charmander is so generic and I wouldn't want to distract anyone else's Charmander."

"_Sure. Holly calls me Little Guard_," he told me. "_But that's too long._" I thought for a couple of seconds as we walked.

"How about Koal?" He agreed readily, liking it a lot apparently. "Okay Koal, welcome to the team."

"_I'm only staying with you until you hand off that egg. I'm staying with it_." I could see what Holly meant when she said I should talk some sense into him. I doubted the other Professor would take Koal with the egg.

"We'll see about that Koal." He turned his nose up at me and I returned him to his Poké ball with a smirk. He was going to be fun to get to know. "Let's go, Athos. I want to get at least to the grove with the Combee nest before the sun sets."

Athos nodded and jumped ahead, leading the way down the dirt road. I followed with the egg safely tucked into its case and in my arms.

**Hey all! This is gonna (hopefully) be a story I'll keep up and not delete after two days. Since I found the concept really fun, the main character is me! I wanted to write a story with my own reactions and ways of doing things, so I made the main character me. As always, if there is anything that needs fixing, like grammar errors, feel free to tell me in the reviews or just tell me the story sucks, whatever. **

**On a different note, I want y'all to send in OC's! I can't promise they'll all be used, but I will do my best. Send them to my PM box because I wouldn't want my reviews being clogged up with character descriptions. Here's a template for ya. **

****Name:  
Age:  
Gender ('cause Alex is way too generic for its own good):

Looks:

Distinguishing marks or features:

Personality:

Pokemon (moves, genders and personalities would be appreciated but not mandated):

Goals:

Aura user, yes or no?

Any background info useful for character development or fun situations:

Anything else?:

Are you sure?:

'Cause i will use this:

All done?:

Okay. Good.


	2. Not good, not good at all

"Athos, I swear if we're lost because of you…"I threatened emptily. Athos sniffed the air with a scowl on his face. All because of that stupid little Buneary…

An hour ago, we came across a Buneary. He seemed cute enough at first. He smiled and cooed and hopped around. But then he started bugging Athos. Next thing I knew, Athos was chasing the little brat through the trees because he had pulled his fur. Athos never had much patience for the Pokémon along this road.

"_We're not lost, Hailey. I just have to get revenge on that little twa -_"

"Ah, ah! No vulgarity in front of Eggy," I scolded him. He rolled his eyes at me, but at least he didn't revert to vulgarity that a sailor would shun. He and I had a bad habit that I was trying to break us of. At least I stuck to the same three words whereas he had a very colorful vernacular.

"_Yoo-hoo! Over here dinkus_!" a tiny voice shouted from our left. It was that little twerp of a Buneary. Athos snarled at him and dived for the rabbit, only to smack his nose into a tree.

"Athos, are you okay?" I asked. He shook his fur out and rubbed his nose.

"_Only thing hurt is my pride_," he answered. The Buneary stuck his tongue out at Athos and bounced up and down. Athos growled again and threw dirt in the rabbit's eyes, his Sand Attack.

"_That's cheating_!" the little brat whined as he tried to rub the dirt out.

"Athos, Tackle!" I ordered, hoping to just take care of this quickly. Athos smashed his body into the little Buneary's and sent him to the ground. The Buneary bounced back up and made to punch Athos in a Pound attack, but he missed. "Tackle again!"

Athos once more smashed into Buneary and this time the little brat turned tail and ran. Athos spat in the direction it went and proudly trotted back to me.

"_And that is how things are done_." I laughed at him, but didn't say anything to hurt his pride.

"Let's go, Master Rabbit Hunter. I want to at least try and get un-lost before the sun sets on us." The sky was already starting to turn pink, and I did not want to be lost at night. Fernvale was a pretty tame island compared to some of the others out there, but there were still dangerous creatures in the forest.

Athos led the way with his nose in the air, sniffing for the familiar scent of the road. Koal decided to grace us with his overprotective presence not long after we got rid of the Buneary. I didn't know Pokémon could just pop out like that, but he made it clear that he would be looking after the egg even after dark.

That night, when we stopped for the night, we still hadn't made it back to the road. I figured continuing on would just get us lost, or we would end up at Tirsen Village, one or the other. Tirsen was a dinky little place out on the east end of the island. I never had to run any messages there, so I never really knew much about the place.

I dumped the wood into the ring of stones that would be our fire pit. After setting it all up, Koal helped me light it. I roasted a small pot of soup as I made sure Athos and Koal got their food too.

"_How come you never put Athos in his Poké ball_?" Koal asked between bites.

"Cause he doesn't have one," I answered. Koal looked surprised, so I elaborated. "When Athos and I first met, he was lost and abandoned. I kept him and he's stayed by my side ever since. He doesn't need to be in a Poké ball." Athos grinned a little smugly at our lizard friend, but I smacked his ear. "Don't gloat."

When the kettle nearly boiled over, I scrambled to get it off the fire so it wouldn't scorch. And I thought I could handle a pot of soup… Silly me. I never had much talent in cooking. Aura yes, cooking no.

Holly still found it funny when I would hold a conversation with one of her Pokémon. I knew there were all sorts of aura talents out there, and mine was one of the most common. Talking with Pokémon wasn't a rare talent, just really uncommon. Holly had discovered more talents from her research.

There were those who could just see the aura world, all the colors and the natural energies of the world. There were those that could shape it, using it like a tool to help themselves and others. Some could connect their hearts with others and ask them to help or show them a new perspective. Other's like me, could listen to the aura world and understand others no matter what language they were speaking. But I was sure there were more talents out there just like there were always more Pokémon to discover.

Koal had found his way to the egg again and had wrapped himself around it. It was cute the way he doted over it, but I wondered why. He said it wasn't his and it probably wasn't even the same species. So why was it so important to him? I didn't want to think about what would happen when I had to give the egg to the other Professor.

"Koal, why do you like this egg so much?" I asked, blurted actually. Sometimes I just couldn't keep my mouth shut.

He looked a little irritated at me, but he sighed. "_The parents of this egg just let it go. Holly asked and they didn't think twice about giving it away. I didn't want the child inside here to feel abandoned._" I frowned, seeing his point a little too clearly. I pulled the two closer to me, avoiding the fire on Koal's tail.

"Koal, I wouldn't let this egg be lonely like that. I would only give it to the Professor if he had other Pokémon that would be nice to it." He didn't seem to feel better, but I saw the muscles in his back relax a little. Athos looked over at the two of us and smirked. He knew exactly what I was saying. He knew how I tried to make everyone feel better even if there was no reason they should.

His smirk reminded me of Luke and how he'd given me the nickname Switzy because I was always resolving problems between him and Maia. It had only been one day and I already missed my friends. I wondered if Jesi and Maia took the news well or if Jess had sworn to the heavens at me. I laughed at the various names I knew she would have called me.

The fire sputtered and I threw another log on it. Koal had already fallen asleep and Athos looked like he was nearly there. I pulled the bedroll out of my bag and spread it out, careful not to move my leg and upset Koal.

The stars were bright as diamonds in the sky. The Lampent constellation was right next to the moon, promising balance for the next day. I always liked stars and their stories. The tales of heroes and their trusted partners, defending the meek and seeking the greatest treasures. Their stories were part of what inspired me to make my own, to challenge the League and make a name for myself.

Yawning a jaw-cracking yawn, I laughed to myself. Thinking about old stories would only keep me up and I wanted to get going early tomorrow to find the road. I fell asleep with the fire burning and my Pokémon by my side.

The second day wasn't much to talk about. We found our way back to the road… eventually. Athos found it after Koal insisted it was the opposite direction. I didn't know lizards could blush, but Koal sure made a fine show of it.

The usual Venomoth and Beautifly flew around the trees as the Natu and Pidove flapped around the ground in search of seeds. A few Caterpie and Wurmple were making nests on the tree branches, but none came close. Athos scared the birds and Koal had the advantage over the bugs. Safe to say, the second day was pretty boring.

I found the lack of people disturbing, but not many people traveled to Nikkus City on a Sunday. Businesses were closed and shipping routes didn't come to the south side of Fernvale. So, we were the only ones on the road.

When we stopped for the night, Koal wrapped himself around the egg again and Athos draped his heavy body over my legs.

"You know, you aren't a little Eevee anymore," I told him. He smiled with his eyes closed and said nothing. I sighed and looked over at Koal and Eggy. I pulled his tail away from the egg's side a little bit. "Don't cook the poor thing. " Koal humphed and just curled around it tighter.

"_I know what I'm doing_," he grouched. I smirked and let him believe that.

The third day… now the third day was interesting.

I could smell the sea as we got close to the port town. Forestri, despite being surrounded by forest on three sides, was one of the busiest places on the island. I wondered why it had never grown bigger than Nikkus City, but I guess others didn't do so well being surrounded by trees.

Athos was practically skipping down the road as he led the way. Koal seemed sad, but I knew why. We had to give the egg away and I bet he was thinking about leaving his home behind. I knew that the other Professor probably wouldn't take him along, but I hoped he would. I had no idea what to say if he didn't.

"So guys, can you believe we're already almost there?" I asked neither one in particular.

"_I know! After we do Holly's favor, we can finally get to Festa City and go challenge our first Gym_!" Athos could hardly contain his excitement. Koal's fire wavered a bit and sent up a puff of grey smoke.

"_Yeah… exciting_." I had nothing to say, so I didn't say anything, just walked a little closer to the poor guy.

I was about to ask Athos to stay closer when the egg flashed. I blinked in surprise and looked down at it. _I could have sworn…_ It flashed again, this time twice.

"Koal, Athos, we have a problem here!" I panicked. Taking the egg out of the case, I sat on the ground and put it in my lap. Koal immediately crowded towards it.

"_It's hatching?! Now_?!" The egg flashed again as if just to prove Koal right. Koal jumped, but didn't move away.

"It looks like it. It must have been you keeping it so warm at night. I know that eggs hatch faster around fire-type Pokémon since they're warmer than others." The egg flashed and this time it didn't fade back to normal. It was hatching right now!

As the egg glowed, cracking sounds made Athos and me jump. Watching eggs hatch at Holly's lab was always my favorite part, but they always scared me when they cracked. I felt like they would hurt themselves, but they always turned out fine.

The light flashed even brighter as the shell fell away and our baby finally revealed itself. It was all orange with a large, round head, four stumpy legs and very sharp looking teeth. It blinked its eyes open and looked straight at me.

"_Mama_…?" she squeaked. "_Mama_!" _Oooh crap!_ I thought to myself. Now she thinks I'm her mother. I knew Pokémon usually imprinted on the first thing they saw when they hatched, but the ones at the lab always looked past me and Holly to the first Pokémon they could find.

I heard Athos laugh and I sent a glare over in his direction. Koal poked at the baby and made her giggle. I wasn't familiar with this Pokémon, so I dug out my PokéDex.

"**Trapinch, the Ant Pit Pokémon. Trapinch dig cone shaped holes in the desert floor to trap prey. When they fall on their backs, they have a hard time getting back up because of their large heads.**"

"So that's what you are," I said to her. She wiggled in my lap and tried to find her way to her feet. I picked her up and set her on the ground.

Koal watched intently as she stumbled around, getting used to her own body. Athos kept her on her feet a few times when Koal wasn't fast enough. She looked happy to have their help.

I grabbed my PokéGear from my back pack and tried checking the signal. GPS and phones were known to malfunction in Archipelago, especially on the forested islands. Signals didn't travel well between islands and I didn't even have one bar. I swore quietly and put the thing back in my bag. _So much for getting Holly's help. I'll have to call her when I get to town._ Trapinch wobbled back over to me and climbed into my lap. Already she was used to her legs. _She must be a quick learner_, I thought.

"_What do we do now_?" Athos asked. "_Holly's friend wanted an egg, not a baby Trapinch._"

"We'll just have to get to town and call Holly from the Poké Center. I don't know what we'll do if she gets mad at us." Koal pet Trapinch hesitantly, like he was afraid he was going to break her. I picked her up and put the egg case in my bag before I started walking towards the town.

"_She's really kinda cute_," Athos teased. "_Maybe we should just keep her._"

"We can't Athos, Sylthe doesn't belong to us."

"_Sylthe_?" Koal asked.

"Yeah. I don't want her to go nameless." Athos smiled.

"_Isn't that the old word for the forest_?" I smiled. He always knew so much that you'd never expect him to know.

"Yeah. Folks used to call this the Sylthe Forest. Don't know why they stopped. It's such a pretty name."

Koal piped up unexpectedly, "_I like it_."

"Thank you Koal." Athos rolled his eyes and trotted ahead.

True to my predictions, the four of us reached Forestri at 1:13. Athos marveled at the town smells and Koal even gaped a little. Sylthe had fallen asleep in my arms half an hour ago and was sleeping like a drugged log. I knew Forestri well enough that I could find most places without a map. So it took us only a few minutes to get to the Pokémon Center.

I'd never really been in it, considering most of my errands were to the docks and back. So I was amazed by the sheer size of the place. The ceiling vaulted over our heads with enough room to let birds fly around. The lobby was tastefully decorated with plants and paintings while the desk with the nurse behind it was plain and utilitarian.

"Hello!" she greeted us. "How can I help you today?"

"I, uh, yes… Do you know where I can get some baby Pokémon food and a phone?" To her credit, she didn't seem surprised at my odd request, but she went right to work. After dragging up a bag the size of Sylthe out of a cupboard behind the counter, she pointed me towards a land-line computer phone. I thanked her and put the food in my backpack.

Athos and Koal made themselves comfortable around my stuff and I picked up the receiver. I called Holly's office, but Nick said she wasn't there. Frustrated, I hung up and looked down at Sylthe in my lap.

"Now what are we going to do? I don't have Holly's home number, or her cell. How am I supposed to explain this to her colleague?"

"Excuse me, did you mention a colleague of Professor Holly's" I nearly jumped off the bench, but I couldn't because Sylthe was in my lap. I turned to see a broad man with brown hair, a small beard and dark eyes. "Are you the young lady she sent with the egg?"

I blushed furiously. This was the man I was supposed to meet with the _egg_, not Sylthe. "I-I-I am. A-are you H-Holly's friend?" He smiled warmly and sat down beside me.

"Yes. I'm Professor Birch, nice to meet you." I shook his hand and introduced myself. "I apologize if I seem rude, but do you have the egg I need? I have to get back to Hoenn soon or my daughter will come looking for me. Sapphire can be a bit of a hassle if she thinks I'm in trouble."

"You see… um… Shit." My words had abandoned me, but apparently not my foul mouth. At least he didn't seem put off. "I'm really, really, _really_ sorry, but… The egg kinda… hatchedonthewayhere." Birch's face went from politely distracted to flabbergastedly amused.

"It hatched?" I pointed down at Sylthe.

"Yeah. It hatched." Birch' mouth twitched, and then he roared in laughter. I blushed even brighter, but he seemed to find the whole situation hilarious.

"Haha! Well, this certainly puts a twist on things. I guess I'll have to call Holly when I get back. Nice meeting you Hailey."

"Wait! What am I supposed to do with Sylthe?" He raised an eyebrow as if to say, 'Isn't it obvious?'

"I needed to study how the egg matured after it hatched. Elm and I had conflicting theories about whether night or day born Pokémon matured differently. So, why don't you keep a journal about Sylthe? You can even send me photos once in a while if you want."

"Really? You're not mad that I messed up your whole experiment?" He waved it off.

"Of course not. As a scientist, I have to plan for success but expect failure. About ninety percent of science is failure." His words made me feel a little better. Sylthe yawned and squeaked, waking up. She looked up at Birch and clacked her teeth together. "Nice to meet you too, Sylthe."

"_Hello_," she squeaked. Birch scratched under her chin and made her coo in happiness.

"You'll have a fun time raising her, that I can tell you." He lifted himself off the bench and dusted off the front of his coat. "I look forward to your letters." With that, he left, leaving me with my baby Trapinch and no idea how to keep a journal about Sylthe's growth.

"_So… Festa City_?" Athos prodded. I smiled and gathered up my things.

"Yeah. Festa City." I looked down at Koal. "So, are you coming with as my Pokémon? Or would you rather I send you back to Holly?" He crossed his arms and grinned at me.

"_I told you I was staying with the egg, didn't I? Just because Sylthe hatched doesn't mean I'm leaving_." I scooped him up and hugged him.

"Thanks Koal." He fidgeted until Sylthe pawed his stomach.

"_Looks like she likes you_," Athos teased. I laughed and set Koal back on the floor.

"_Mamaa! I'm hungry_," Sylthe whined. I dug the bag of food out of my backpack and grabbed a handful. Sylthe happily ate three before falling asleep again.

"_She sure likes to sleep, doesn't she_?" Koal mused.

"Yeah. Baby Pokémon are like that." I gathered up my things… again… and headed out of the Pokémon Center. Athos and Koal followed dutifully as we made our way to the docks.

I've always liked the harbor. Wingull and Pelipper were always gliding on the breeze and Marill loved to play in the shallow water at the town edge. Athos kept his nose in the air almost the entire time we were looking for a ferry service.

The smells of saltwater mixed with the oil that they used on the boats and the distinctive smell of Lakki's fried doughnuts. Under it all was the scent of fish and waterlogged wood, but it only made the harbor better. I knew that Swablue Sea Corp. ran a pretty affordable ferry service out of Forestri, but first I had to find their building.

"_Hailey, can we get some of Lakki's doughnuts_?" Athos pleaded. His red eyes were just begging pitifully. My own stomach growled before I could say no. I sighed and changed directions to Lakki's stall.

"Hey there Hailey," she said amiably. "Something is different about you…" I raised an eyebrow at her. She giggled and flipped a few doughnuts in her fryer. "Just kidding. When'd you get a Charmander and a Trapinch?"

"Holly gave me Koal and I hatched Sylthe. I'm finally going to challenge the League." She smiled widely and scooped a few of the small doughnuts into a bag.

"Congrats! Guess I won't be seeing you for a while." She handed me the doughnuts and I dug out my wallet. I couldn't believe my eyes when I looked into it. I was freaking rich! That must have been what my dad meant when he said there was a gift in there. I quickly handed Lakki a five Poké note and put it back.

"Guess you won't. See you later Lakki!" She waved as we left. Athos ate half the bag and Koal only tried one doughnut.

"_Too sweet_," he informed me. I shrugged and ate the rest.

By the time we had finished them, I still had no idea where the damn ferry service was. We'd been wandering the port for a while and I was getting frustrated. I wasn't really even looking where I was going anymore, just reading the shop fronts to see if any of them were the Swablue Seas ferry service. And when you're not looking where you're going, you usually end up bumping into people… which I did.

Both of us landed on our asses and his Croconaw growled at me. Athos snarled right back, but I told him to stop it. The boy I had knocked down was pretty small, smaller than me, which was a rarity. I may be kinda tall, but most people are taller than me. He adjusted his gold hat over his spiky black hair, making sure the gold goggles sat on the rim nicely. He checked the camera that hung over his black shirt with the diagonal stripes and dusted off his black, basketball shorts. He pulled himself off the ground and held out a hand to help me up.

"Sorry about that," he blushed. "I wasn't looking where I was going." I took the offered hand and let him pull me up.

"No, it's my fault. I was looking for the ferry service and I wasn't paying attention."

"Swablue Seas?" he asked and I nodded. "It's just a bit that way." He pointed in the direction I had been going in the first place.

"Thanks. I'm Hailey by the way." I put out my hand.

"Leon," he said, shaking it. I noticed how his eyes never really met mine. They were such a lovely shade of green and I wondered if he was just shy. "I'm taking the next ferry to the Cat's Paw Islands. Are you going there too?"

"Yeah. I'm off to Festa City to challenge the Gym there."

"Cool. Here, I'll show you to the ferry building." I liked his friendly manner. He was cheerful despite the fact I had plowed into him. Though, his Croconaw didn't seem to like me much. She growled at me again. "Miren, be nice."

"Miren, that's a pretty name," I thought out loud. Leon smiled and nodded. He led me to a red brick building with a sign in the front window that said, 'Swablue Seas' and featured a Swablu on the front. The door jingled a bell when he pushed it open.

"Hello there!" the secretary greeted us in a friendly manner. "How can I help you?"

"I'd like a ticket for the next ferry to Festa City, please." She ticked away on the computer and printed one out for me. I paid for it and left the building with Leon.

We both had to run to Dock 18, considering the ferry left in twenty minutes. Koal had a hard time keeping up, so I had to carry both him and Sylthe. We arrived just in time to board the boat and throw our tickets at the lady on the dock. I laughed when we set off, happy that I was finally off Fernvale Island and heading out to have my own adventure. Leon laughed with me, imitating the lady's face when she saw us shooting past her. I had a feeling being friends with Leon was going to be fun.

**There ends chapter two! Thanks to Thegreatest777 for the OC named Leon Smith! I'm still accepting OC's, but be warned that they may not appear in the story, or just barely if they do. Though someone please send me a girl. I've got nothing but guys! See ya next chapter! **


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